The Villainess in the Childcare Story Doesn’t Hide Her Personality - Chapter 12

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“…They’re both so talented, after all.”
Timothy answered with a dejected tone.
“I’m not good at anything. I’m working hard to learn swordplay, but I’m hopeless at it….”
“What about Leopold?”
I tilted my head curiously.
“Is Leopold skilled with a sword?”
I’d expected a simple “yes, he’s quite good,” but the answer that came back was completely unexpected.
“Leopold doesn’t learn swordplay. He studies other things instead. Like painting… He’s exceptionally talented at things like that.”
“Leopold doesn’t learn swordplay? That’s odd. Don’t all noble sons learn the sword? Like you do.”
In truth, it was far more than merely odd.
‘This is seriously strange.’
Nearly every noble son received mandatory training in swordplay.
It wasn’t simply considered a basic accomplishment for a nobleman.
Noble families were required to send at least one son to the Border Knight Order to serve for three years, facing monsters at the frontier.
Failure to wield a sword properly meant falling behind in an instant.
The price for that ranged from injury to death itself.
Families without sons were exempt from this obligation, but any household with even a single son spared no effort in teaching him swordplay.
Yet here they were—forcing the delicate Timothy to wear men’s clothing just to learn the sword, while the robust Leopold was given a brush instead?
‘…This is strange.’
I frowned.
No matter how I considered it, there was no reason for Timothy to be learning swordplay.
If Timothy hadn’t excused himself after finishing his meal, I would have remained lost in thought.
“I’m sorry. I need to retire early today. Father is coming….”
“Is that so? What a shame. I always find our time together so enjoyable.”
Though I’d expressed my regret gently, Timothy’s eyes reddened at the corners.
“You’re always so kind to me… yet I only ever disappoint you. I’m truly sorry.”
“….”
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
It would have been easier on my heart to deal with a Timothy who said nothing at all.
But….
Perhaps.
‘This might be my chance.’
“Timothy.”
I slowly opened my mouth toward him.
“May I ask you just one thing?”
“…I’m not sure if I can answer, but… if I know it.”
I sensed it instinctively.
This was the moment.
Right now, when Timothy carried a debt of gratitude and an unfounded sense of guilt toward me.
I had to ask now.
“Why are you pretending to be a boy?”
“…!”
I didn’t know a person could be shocked to this degree.
Timothy covered his mouth with both hands and stared at me with eyes as wide as saucers.
“H-how….”
His pupils trembled violently.
The child was shaking so badly that I could hear his teeth chattering.
“P-p-please… keep it a secret.”
“Of course.”
I quickly nodded to reassure Timothy.
‘I never expected him to admit it so readily.’
I had hoped I’d made a wrong guess, but now that the truth was revealed, my mouth tasted bitter.
“I’ll keep your secret, so tell me—why are you cross-dressing?”
Gulp.
I heard Timothy swallow hard.
And the sound of gears turning in his head.
Fortunately, Timothy seemed to have decided that coming clean was his best option right now.
“I… I’m not entirely sure. But I’ve been told since birth that I was wrong….”
“Why were you told you were wrong from birth?”
Timothy hung his head.
“Because I’m a girl.”
“….”
“I should have been born a boy, no matter what. But I was born a girl instead… Mother nearly died giving birth to me. And after I was born, she was so ill that she almost didn’t survive.”
“And that’s it?”
I asked, utterly flabbergasted.
“Even though Leopold was born healthy right after, you had to keep cross-dressing for such a reason?”
“W-well, I’m not entirely….”
I bit my lip.
Everything was strange and mysterious.
Of course, if there had been a difficult birth and toxemia during pregnancy, the child could have been resented.
That didn’t justify abuse, but at least the reason for it was understandable.
But to continue raising a daughter in disguise as a boy when the heir—a healthy son—was alive and well?
‘…Think, Tessa. There must be some reason!’
I felt as though I was approaching the truth, yet I couldn’t grasp what that truth actually was, and it frustrated me.
Timothy rose from his seat, watching my expression.
“I… I should go now. Thank you again today… Lady Tessa.”
I watched Timothy leave in a daze, then hurried after the child.
‘…So it was him.’
A tall, dignified-looking nobleman descended from a carriage adorned lavishly with gold leaf.
It was none other than Marquis Dever.
“I hope you’ve been well, Father.”
Timothy greeted him respectfully.
Marquis Dever let out a derisive snort as if he’d witnessed something distasteful, then brandished his cane.
Timothy hurried toward where the cane pointed and struggled to move the trunk.
‘…What is this.’
My mouth had gone completely dry.
Even if the Marquise, Regina, and Leopold abused and tormented Timothy, they at least treated him as human.
They treated him as inferior and base, but still human.
But Marquis Dever….
‘That’s not even human treatment. That’s how you handle animals.’
Marquis Dever resembled nothing so much as a coachman wielding a whip over a horse.
What hurt most was how utterly accustomed Timothy appeared to such treatment.
While I stood there in shock, I heard multiple footsteps thundering down the stairs.
“Father!”
Leopold rushed toward the Marquis and embraced him tightly.
“I missed you so much!”
“I missed you too.”
The Marquis answered with a gentle smile.
“And your sister…?”
“Regina is getting ready, dear. You know how girls are.”
“She’d be beautiful to my eyes even as she is.”
“She’s concerned about her debutante ball, it seems. Do understand.”
“Of course. I’m not such a narrow-minded man.”
Marquis Dever chuckled heartily and brandished his cane again, whereupon Timothy quickly lit a pipe tobacco and handed it to him.
‘…I’m going to lose my mind.’
I clenched my teeth hard.
Was I really supposed to just stand here and watch this?
‘I have to endure it.’
Timothy himself was far too deeply indoctrinated right now—if I intervened, it would only backfire.
The Marquis continued to direct Timothy with his cane, ordering him about.
The Marquise and the other two children chatted away as if this bizarre display were perfectly normal.
It was proof that all of this was utterly ordinary to them—their everyday reality.
“Oh, what’s this?”
That was when Leopold suddenly snatched something from Timothy’s pocket.
It was the dolphin-shaped keychain I had given him.
“What? How did you get something like this?”
Timothy answered, trembling.
“T-Tessa gave it to me… as a birthday gift….”
“A birthday gift when your birthday’s already passed? Khahaha! And how would a commoner afford this? You’d have to starve for a year just to buy one!”
I had to restrain myself from bursting out of my hiding place.
There were nobles who believed that commoners were all lazy good-for-nothings who didn’t work properly, and that was why they remained poor.
Leopold appeared to be precisely that type.
“You stole it, didn’t you? Hmm? You’re a thief. I should report you to the authorities.”
“I didn’t steal it!”
Suddenly, Timothy’s voice rang out loudly.
Until that moment, Marquis Dever and his wife, along with Regina, had been watching the situation unfold with indifference—but their heads snapped toward Timothy in unison.
Timothy cried out once more, his voice carrying far greater force and conviction.
“This is mine. It’s a gift I received!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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